As the sun comes up over Auke Lake on Saturday, more than 70 people will line up in their wetsuits and bright swimming caps to plunge into the cold, dark water.
The Aukeman Triathlon, which has been running for about a decade, returns once again this Saturday. As of Thursday afternoon, 73 people were registered for the event, which Race Director Liz Smith said is a little lower than normal.
Registration closes at noon today and has picked up this week, Smith said, as the weather has improved in Juneau. Aukeman is one of two triathlons in town, with the Juneau Peace Officers Sprint Triathlon taking place in the spring.
The swim portion is what sets the two events apart, Smith said. While the Juneau Peace Officers event has its swim at the Dimond Park Aquatics Center, the Aukeman Triathlon pits the participants against nature.
“It is the only triathlon event in town that has a lake,” Smith said, “an open-water swim, so that’s a big deal.”
The swim can be a daunting task for the participants, some of whom are teenagers. The cold, dark water can serve as a shock, which is why triathlon trainer Jamie Bursell started a training camp five years ago to prepare participants for the event every year.
Bursell, who has participated in every Aukeman since the first one in 2009, has been working with a group of 20 people this year to prepare for the event. They run the course by Auke Lake and swim in the water, getting used to the challenges that await Saturday. Bursell said she’s been particularly impressed by April Rezendes, who finished third among women at the 2016 event.
Though this type of triathlon includes battles both against the elements and against other participants, Bursell said in the end it’s more about fighting against oneself.
“Triathlon is really an individual event,” Bursell said. “You’d like to place high and everything, but most people, people in my camp, I’m really emphasizing looking at your old times and improving on your individual times. In the end, just be the best you can be.”
Participants start showing up at 6 a.m. Saturday, warming up before the event starts at 7:30 a.m. with the swim portion. The swim portion is 750 meters, leading to the 19 kilometer bike course and finishing with a 5 kilometer run. The biking will be on a closed course which goes to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center and back, Smith said, and the event won’t affect traffic.
The running course will be mostly on the Auke Lake Trail, with portions being on Glacier Highway. The event will finish up around 11 a.m., with the race finishing at the University of Alaska Southeast.
Though she’s never been a participant in it, Bursell said the triathlon is an entertaining spectator event, particularly the beginning of the swim.
“It’s really cool to see the start of it,” Bursell said. “You kind of go, ‘Whoa, I didn’t realize there was this many wetsuits in Juneau.’ There are so many people.”
• Contact reporter Alex McCarthy at alex.mccarthy@juneauempire.com.
